Malaysia Airlines to reduce fuel costs with SITA’s wind and weather service

Malaysia Airlines aims to reduce fuel costs on 40 aircraft, including their A380 fleet, with SITA’s FMS Wind Uplink service. This service constantly updates key Flight Management System (FMS) calculations, so the airline can adjust flight plans according to changing wind and weather conditions, enabling the aircraft to use fuel as cost effectively as possible. During trials, Wind Uplink delivered savings of up to 600 kilograms of fuel on a single flight sector.

Captain Izham Ismail, Director of Operations for Malaysia Airlines, said: “This new service from SITA delivers savings straight away. We have already trialed SITA Wind Uplink with great success in reducing our fuel costs. It has also helped improve our final fuel on board predictions and made our estimated time of arrival predictions more accurate. We are experiencing real business benefits following introduction of this service at Malaysia Airlines.”

SITA’s AIRCOM Cockpit Datalink Applications provide the backbone for the automatic Wind Uplink service, which saves valuable crew time and can help reduce an aircraft’s carbon footprint.

Katrina Korzenowski, Director, Aircraft Services, Asia Pacific, SITA, said: “Wind Uplink enables airlines to take advantage of beneficial changes in weather so crews can bring flights in on time and on budget, reducing fuel costs whenever possible. Due to high fuel prices, we anticipate increased demand for Wind Uplink in the future and are already in discussions with many other potential customers. In addition, because Wind Uplink is packaged as a single service, it can be up and running in just a few hours for SITA Flight Briefing Service and AIRCOM Datalink customers—without any capital expenses.”

Malaysia Airlines carried 13.4 million passengers in 2012, operating nearly 300 flights daily. Its network of 60 destinations in four continents was expanded with its entry into the oneworld airline alliance in February 2013. Malaysia Airlines has received more than 100 awards in the last 10 years, including the 5-star airline recognition by Skytrax World Airline Awards for 2012 and 2013.